A team of Indian and British climbers made the first ascent of Chamsen Kangri, in the Saser Kangri massif of the Eastern Karakoram, Ladakh, on 21 August 2013.

The expedition was made up of Divyesh Muni, Vineeta Muni, Andy Parkin, Susan Jensen and Victor Saunders with a team of six Sherpas (Samgyal, Mingma, Ang Dorji, Chedar, Dawa and Karma) in support of the Indian component of the expedition, plus three kitchen staff, a runner and liaison officer Hav./AEC Raj Kumar.

The team approached the mountain from the Nubra Valley to the west, making the first crossing of the Sakang Col (6150m) in order to reach the North Shukpa Kunchang Glacier, and thence the south-western aspect of Chamsen Kangri.

A period of reconnaissance and several attempts were needed to established a route over the col, which involved some steep climbing. Nearly 1000m of rope was fixed in order to facilitate to transport of the expedition's supplied over the col. A base camp was established below Chamsen Kangri at 5600m.

On 14 August Andy Parkin, Susan Jensen and Victor Saunders were camped on the North Shukpa Kunchang Glacier, beneath Saser Kangri II, preparing to return westwards across the col for more supplies. At about 10pm the camp was struck by the blast from a large avalanche on the north face of Saser Kangri II. The blast propelled Andy Parkin, still in his sleeping bag and tent, into a crevasse along with climbing equipment and other supplies.

Parkin was eventually rescued from the crevasse with the climbing gear that remained, but was found to be suffering from a back injury. He walked to a position safe from avalanches and remained there in a tent while Jensen and Saunders went to alert the other members of the expedition at Saser Kangri base camp. Parkin was carried to base camp the following day and assistance was summoned using a satellite phone (illegal under Indian law). He was evacuated by the Indian Air Force on 17 August and taken to hospital in Leh.

Susan Jensen, Victor Saunders, Divyesh and Vineeta Muni and the Sherpas then turned their attention to Chamsen, climbing the west ridge via camps at 6000m and 6500m. About 600m of rope was fixed on the section leading to the final camp. The climbers reached the summit on 21 August.

They descended by the same route and then returned across the Sakang Col to the Nubra Valley.